GB Railfreight (GBRf), the UK’s leading rail freight operator, operated in late July 2026, the first commercial service of the Class 99 hybrid freight locomotive, marking a major milestone in the modernisation and decarbonisation of Britain’s rail freight network.
99001, the first commercial Class 99 service for Maritime Transport departed DP World London Gateway carrying intermodal freight – goods moved in the same container by multiple modes of transport, such as rail and road – bound for Maritime’s Hams Hall Rail Freight Terminal in the West Midlands.
The new Class 99 locomotives – set to reduce emissions by more than half on a typical journey – are key to unlocking green growth across the rail freight sector, which is worth £2.5b to the national economy and will help meet the Government’s target to grow the sector 75% by 2050. Combining electric operation with the ability to run on non-electrified routes using renewable fuels, the new locomotives are designed to cut carbon emissions without compromising access to any part of the national rail network.
With only around 40% of Britain’s railway currently electrified, the Class 99 offers a practical solution to reducing emissions from Britain’s supply chains without waiting for the rail network to be fully electrified. The faster acceleration of the new locomotives will also help freight trains integrate seamlessly with passenger services, improving the efficient use of the network while supporting economic growth.
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Related Topic: Freight forwarding goes right back to the 1800’s!
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